Mountain Bike Races

Leadville Trail 100 MTB

Leadville, Colorado
August

The Leadville Trail 100 MTB is one of the
primary events in the three-month Leadville Race Series, which also features a
100-mile trail run. Competitors must win a lottery to compete—2014
hopefuls should submit by February 28—but for good reason. The ride cuts
through the Colorado Rockies, climbing more than 2,000 feet to an elevation
higher than two miles. "The LT100 blends a race against time and the
challenge associated with riding and surviving 100 miles through the highest
mountains in Colorado," says race director Josh Colley. "In air this
thin, you never know how the body will respond to being pushed to its limits."

Photo: Dave Silver

Mountain Bike Races

B.C. Bike Race

North Vancouver, Canada
June

The B.C. Bike Race might be the best way
to see western Canada. The seven-day singletrack stage race begins in North
Vancouver, with a day's riding on the North Shore's famous ladder bridges. The
race then cuts across the Strait of Georgia for a leg through Vancouver Island
to Cumberland. Riders next cross back over the strait, riding south toward
Vancouver before cutting north and completing the weeklong trek in Whistler. As
many as 600 riders from 33 countries participate in the race, according to marketing
director Andreas Hestler, who says B.C. is "a recipe for good times, great
camaraderie, lasting memories, and a whole lot of whooping and hollering out on
the trails."

Photo: Devon Balet

Mountain Bike Races

Whiskey Off-Road

Prescott, Arizona
April

In the Whiskey Off-Road, the city of
Prescott and the Prescott National Forest collaborate to host a three-day binge
of mountain biking, dining, gallery-hopping, and taking in the great outdoors.
The weekend features six rides, of varying lengths and difficulties to
accommodate pros and amateurs alike. Andy Suter, a marketing manager for
coordinating entity Epic Rides, promises that all courses offer "technical,
fast singletrack, smooth fire roads, great climbing, and vistas that will leave
participants speechless." Every mountain biker should experience this "microcosm
of mountain-bike culture" at least once, he says, adding that they'll become
"hooked after their first shot at the Whiskey."

Mountain Bike Races

Firecracker 50

Breckenridge, Colorado
July 4

Forget fireworks. Forget half-pound
burgers and mounds of potato salad. The Firecracker 50 is how you should
celebrate Independence Day. Participating cyclists start the race in
Breckenridge, where they lead the town's Fourth of July parade. According to
the race's website, things only get better from there, with "a couple of
grunty little climbs, a couple of long lung busters, some absolutely rippin'
descents, and plenty of contouring flume and singletrack." Don't miss out
on this highlight of the Colorado mountain-bike circuit.

Photo: Courtesy of Ice Man Cometh

Mountain Bike Races

Bell's Beer Iceman Cometh Challenge

Traverse City, Michigan
November

The Iceman Cometh spans the distance
between Kalkaska and Traverse City, Michigan, cutting through 30 miles of woods,
meadows, and trails in Pere Marquette State Forest. But the race is about much
more than Michigan's scenery. "When you boil it down, the Bell's Iceman is
all about testing yourself against Mother Nature," says race director
Steve "Iceman" Brown. "You never know exactly what she's going
to throw at you in early November in Northern Lower Michigan." As many as
6,000 participants and 10,000 spectators attend the Iceman, which hosts two
other races—the Sno-Cone, for children, and the Slush Cup, for beginners.

Mountain Bike Races

The Whole Enchilada

Moab, Utah
August

This single-day ride tackles the Whole
Enchilada trail, a challenging and cherished Utah route. "Nowhere else in
the world can you start in the high alpine above 11,000 feet and descend
through four distinct ecosystems," says organizer Sarah Rawley. The race's
three stages begin at Burro Pass, moving through Hazard County and eventually
tackling the Porcupine Rim trail. "The Whole Enchilada is iconic in nature
and tests every facet of a mountain biker's abilities," Rawley says. To
prevail, a rider must "keep it all together for the solid 26 miles and
7,000-foot descent."